Jump Ball

Those of you who are frequent readers of this column may have detected that I believe civility in politics is overrated. When principles are challenged, when the stakes are high, sweet talk and comity usually lead to a destructive “compromise.” Our nation is in peril. Our leaders have failed us, and we have miserably failed to hold them accountable. Happy talk and congeniality in the halls of governance will not pull us back from the precipice. “Going along to get along” will not reverse the decay that has infested our system. These times demand harsh, blunt talk. Our current situation begs for forceful action that is based on principles not on “slowing down the inevitable slide into statism.”

Tough talk when dealing with opponents and career politicians is necessary, but when working with allies to capture the levers of power, harsh language could prove to be counterproductive. For those of us in the liberty/patriot movement to have some disagreements about policies or tactics is to be expected. To engage in name calling and character assassination with others who are as passionate as we are about restoring our nation is stupid and self-defeating. Are we willing to sacrifice an opportunity for constitutional government in order to pass another constitutional amendment that will be ignored by the political class? Will we forfeit our chance for constitutional government so that we may encase our preferences for social behavior into law? These are not the only diversions from the laser-like goal of restoring our constitutional republic. There are others, but the focus, the effort and our energy must be on defeating self-serving compromisers and underhanded, big-government statists. We cannot have any hope of restoring constitutional government to the nation as a whole (secession is always an option) until we eliminate the weak and the nannies. We cannot win until we ALL agree that constitutional government is the goal, and we’ll deal with our other differences after the battle is over.

The NCAA Sweet Sixteen is taking place this weekend at a number of venues around the country. There are a number of talented teams who will be playing, but only a quarter of them will advance to the Final Four in Huston. Each team is unique, but they do share some common traits. Each of them has roughly a dozen highly talented players with varying skills. Their experience in tournament competition is rather broad, but not all have played on a stage so prominent. The rules limit each team to five players at one time in the game although substitutions will be an important component of their games. Every game begins with a jump ball, and whichever team wins that will have to first opportunity to score.

The situation today in our country, and its meaning for patriots or liberty-lovers is somewhat similar to the NCAA scenario. The movement consists of people with varying talents, skill levels and experience. We must all work together as a team, however, and for any given task, we should have our best five on the floor. If someone falters or fouls out, our subs must be ready and prepared. Even if we find a teammate who is annoying, we must submerge our dislike and work together as a team for a common purpose. If one of our teammates allows her or his personal agenda and preferences to rise above the team goal, then we must do everything possible to bring the outlier back into the fold,…or put in a substitute. Some huge differences between the Sweet Sixteen and our task are that the survival of our nation is on the line, and losing is not an option. Also, our jump ball takes place at the end of the game rather than the beginning. When our opponents play dirty, no one will call a “foul” because our adversaries pay the referees and control the distribution of whistles. Our game is the proverbial five on eight that so many coaches and players whine about. It’s too bad, but we have spent our lifetimes ignoring the game and failing to learn the rules. It’s time to play catch-up. We can win. We must win. We will win if we play together…as a team. Ball’s up!!

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Niche Quiche

Niche marketing is the new best thing. Discover the demographic that is most interested in your product or service, and target your messages to the media that attract that group. Niche involvement follows a similar pattern. Some people join clubs or organizations and are elected as treasurer because they have banking or accounting backgrounds. Others may be placed in charge of publicity because they may work for a newspaper, radio station or cable system. Each of us has her/his comfort…areas where we feel competent and effective. There are times, however, when we must shed our “comfort skin” and tackle tasks that we do not enjoy, or ones for which we are not particularly skillful.

When confusion reigns and there are so many areas and issues of concern, sometimes the niche concept must be discarded in order to get the job done and the fires extinguished. There are no union work rules for patriots. We do what must be done even if the task is not within our field of expertise. In a perfect orderly Tea Party universe each of us would be like an egg that is safe and secure in its own little cubicle within the carton. If the carton is shaken or radically disturbed, the eggs will crack or break, and the only option that remains is scrambled eggs…everyone doing everything to save the republic. A leader who understands and identifies the talents, skills, preferences and energy levels of the team will transform the disorganization of scrambled eggs into a tasty quiche. The leader will gather the disparate elements and unique personalities together to create a substantive finished product. Scrambled eggs can be effective, but when held together by a quality crust and enhanced by additional ingredients, the overall result can be much greater than that achieved by the dispersed eggs alone.

Adaptation in the face of adversity is an invaluable asset. Many people in the liberty movement have begun to discover new talents and abilities that they may not have used earlier. Because of the constant bombardment of government overreach and unconstitutional actions, patriots have found themselves having to wage battle on several fronts simultaneously. As a writer I often am accused of identifying problems and not providing solutions. I can understand some readers’ frustrations with someone who continually identifies the flaws. Although many in the liberty movement are new to brass-knuckle politics, like any other endeavor you learn by doing. Sometimes you’ll err and lose when you should have or could have won, but the next time around the track, you’ll be smarter and wiser. As a writer who has run statewide as a candidate and campaigned successfully for state representative, I believe that I have some insights that may be helpful for other liberty-minded patriots. As with any advice from any source, you can ignore it, adapt it or adopt it. There are many simultaneous fronts in this fight to take back our country, and various organizations and individuals are working those areas. In nearly every case, someone has chastised me for not embracing or becoming totally involved in their respective crusade. Well, I can’t do them all no matter how meritorious your particular remedy may be, and I will not attempt to do so. I urge you to become part of the quiche rather than disgruntled scrambled eggs. Things will cook a lot better if you do.

In 2010 I took an entire year non-stop from my family, my health, my profession and my home. Now, I spend 4 to 6 hours per day writing these columns having been seasoned by 220 speaking appearances, 46 county fairs plus the state fair, thousands of miles on the road (mostly alone), numerous banquets and picnics, hot weather, cold weather, rain, snow, one televised debate, 2 televised campaign forums, several print interviews and hundreds of wonderful people throughout the 88 counties of Ohio. That’s what I have to offer to you who are passionate about freedom. I will continue to integrate my experience into my columns as I continue to pray for victory for liberty. I am emerging from my shell because I truly want to be a “good egg.”

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Nuking Chicken Little

The post-earthquake tsunami devastation in Japan has developed into a tragic situation. They continue discovering more fatalities, and the number of missing people could increase the death toll significantly. Because of the impact of the wall of water, a number of nuclear power plants have malfunctioned. The issue is compounded by the fact that electrical power has been knocked out for much of the nation near the power sites, and the coolers for the systems have stopped running. News media have been awash with stories and predictions of pending doom for the Japanese, Hawaiians, Alaskans and other U. S. West Coast residents and Western Canadians.

Radiation poisoning is no laughing matter. Neither is the ingestion of any type of harmful chemical or substance whether natural or synthetic. Getting run over by a bus or drowning after an overloaded ferry capsizes are equally unpleasant ways to meet one’s end. Rusty nails, kitchen tools and power tools have the potential for deadly harm, and carbon monoxide can be sleepily fatal if one is in a confined space. Vicious animals, evil people and “wrong place, wrong time” accidents contribute to the untimely demise of people rather frequently. Risky situations and deadly circumstances surround us, but we must go on. The mass media’s obsession with hysterically identifying every source of mortality, and the government’s purported desire to protect us from ALL of them…are unhealthy for us. Fear is distracting, and morbid fear is paralyzing. Wanting to live, and being afraid to die are two radically different attitudes. The desire to survive is natural and instinctive. The fear of death limits one’s potential for living.

When government and media informally conspire to “gin up” threats to our well-being, their well-meaning actions can result in a fearful public who is afraid to take risks. Risk taking is vital for the growth and development of a society or culture. Frontiersmen go to new territory, and the pioneers follow them to establish new settlements. If today’s tenor of fear were in place some 400 years ago, Jamestown would not have been settled, Plymouth would not have been the landing point for people seeking religious freedom, and the backwoods of Georgia would not have echoed with the sounds of convicts and debtors seeking new beginnings. Although the security of the nation is a Constitutional mandate for the Congress, the analysis suggests that their duty is to protect the country from foreign invasion….not from toys in Happy Meals. Their constant pronouncements and warnings of harm have turned us into a sniveling, quivering gaggle of cowards who find any risk to be intolerable.

One of the great concerns for patriots today is the transformation of our country from a nation of producers into a collection of people who believe that they are entitled to rewards from the efforts of others. With entitlement comes the loss of need to take risks. If one expects government and others to provide every need, it follows that government should protect everyone from every risk. So, if government decides to protect us from nuclear accidents, oil spills or disasters in deep-shaft coal mines, our lights will flicker out, our vehicles will sputter and fail, our factories will shutter their windows, and we shall all shiver through the coldest days of winter.

When the great cathedrals of Europe were built, stonemasons occasionally fell from the highest walls and the laborers who quarried the stone were frequently crushed by the massive results of their efforts. They were all simple people whose names have been lost to history, but their work…their risk-taking… attracts thousands of tourists who gape with awe at what their pre-descendants accomplished. Risk taking involves risk…sometimes mortal risk. If an idea, a dream, a family or a nation is worthy of risk, it may mean losing one’s life. When the Nanny State overprotects us, it robs us of our passion for concepts greater than ourselves. It steals our humanity from us, and causes us to behave like panicky chickens who are afraid to die and incapable of living.

Psalm 31:14—“But I trust in you, O Lord; I say ‘You are my God.’ “

Note about yesterday’s “Why Libya.” I had two huge errors in yesterday’s column: 1) I referred to “Tunisia” when I meant Libya; 2) Teddy Roosevelt was elected VP in 1900 and ascended to the presidency when McKinley was assassinated. No excuse, no alibis. I blew it. Thanks to Harold, Steve, Kevin and other careful readers for informing me.

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Why Libya?

In 1785 Thomas Jefferson and John Adams convened a negotiating session in London with the Ambassador from Tripoli about the unwarranted raiding of United States merchant ships and the capturing of U.S citizens for slavery. The Ambassador informed them that because the sailors from America were not followers of the Qur’an, they were open to plunder and slavery. After Jefferson became President, he took action to quell the threat from the Barbary pirates.

C:\Users\Charlie\Videos\RealPlayer Downloads\The Marines' Hymn.flv

This past week President Obama went along with a UN directive promoted by France and Great Britain to enforce a “no fly zone” over Tunisia. It was characterized as a humanitarian effort to save the lives of Tunisians who were protesting and rebelling against Colonel Gaddafi’s dictatorial rule. Although the total extent of the U.S. involvement has not been revealed or leaked, there are strong indications and intelligence that our B-2 bombers were deployed.

At this point we continue to have major deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our military has more than 900 bases in 136 countries across the globe. Our professional fighting forces have been stretched so thin that National Guard and military reserves are serving multiple tours in the various hotspots identified by the nation’s political leadership. In some respects we have come to be known as bellicose bullies while, at the same time, displaying weakness with true threats to our national security. Iran and North Korea have both stated a willingness to do harm to our country and its people, yet their positions as nuclear powers and rogue states remain relatively unchallenged by our leadership. This current state of affairs is not limited to golfing/basketball-player/bracket-creating Democrats. It has existed for some time under presidents from both of the old parties.

In my gut I believe that our political leaders who have not served in armed conflict use these meaningless, unconstitutional adventurous forays as bona fides for establishing their “tough guy” images. This attitude has been prevalent for a long time. In 1898 Teddy Roosevelt formed his own military force and charged up San Juan Hill against a few poorly-armed peasants to prove that he had the courage, the dash and the leadership qualities to be a leader. He was elected to the presidency two years later and served for two terms (he was instrumental in the first great federal land grab). Ronald Reagan ordered the invasion of Grenada, and the invasion of Panama to capture General Noriega was authorized by George H. W. Bush.  President Clinton endorsed General Wesley Clark’s 30,000 foot high military intervention in Bosnia to minimize ethnic cleansing by bombing civilians and the Chinese Embassy.

Tunisia and Gaddafi have been pesky irritants for some time for the United States. In 1986 President Reagan ordered a bombing of Gaddafi’s private complex near Tunis, and one of his children was killed. On December 21, 1988, Pan Am 103 was blown out of the sky over Lockerbie, Scotland, and 259 people perished. It was suspected and recently confirmed that Gaddafi ordered the “hit” in retaliation for the 1986 raid. For as long as the United States has existed as a nation, the Barbary, Tripoli/Tunisian region has been a problem area.

So in the midst of fine dining, dancing the bosa nova, and attempting to appear “presidential,” President Obama has approved another military intervention in Tunisia. Despite his differences from his predecessors, his actions and his rhetoric copy theirs. If humanitarian concerns were his driving impulse, then the Sudan and Rwanda would emerge as theaters of operation. The people who have served in the halls of power for our country may reflect different philosophies, different domestic policies and varying political skills. They all share a common trait, however. They undermine our liberty, plunder our property and steal our wealth while risking the lives of our professional military personnel, spending borrowed money for ordinance and deployment, and behaving like the tin-pot dictators that they claim to oppose. The fault is ours, fellow citizens, for electing the weak to lead us. The Lord said the meek would inherit the earth. The meek are humble. The weak are dangerous.

Why Libya? Why now? Why at all? Why attack countries which have the military might, the GDP and the geo-political power of Rhode Island? Isn’t it forays such as these that lead to our being labeled an international bully? What purpose do we serve by projecting our national power in places such as these? Or…are they mere exercises in the exhibition of presidential personal testosterone? Lord Acton was correct. “Absolute power does corrupt absolutely.”

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The Con-Con Con.

On May 25^th, 1787, a number of delegates assembled in Philadelphia for the expressed purpose of correcting some deficiencies in the Articles of Confederation, the national document of law and purpose for the United States of America. Some of the delegates, however, attended the convention with the intent to discard the Articles and to create a new governing structure. Two of the most eager proponents for a new document were Alexander Hamilton and James Madison...both of them politically skillful and forcefully passionate. As any non-public school or medrasa history will indicate, the movement to replace the Articles of Confederation won the day, and the Constitution of the United States was drafted, adopted and ultimately ratified with some reservations.

One of the components of the Constitution addressed the means and mechanisms for changing the document should the need arise. Thus, Article V was included, and it is printed below.

Article V - Amendment

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.

At the present time there has been increasing public dissatisfaction with the failure of the Congress to abide by the Article 1, Section 8 enumerated powers, and by the profligacy and fiscal irresponsibility of the national legislative body. Some critics have proposed Constitutional amendments to require a balanced budget or to limit the number of consecutive terms that a congress person could hold office. While these ideas and others with similar goals may have merit, the effort by some to initiate an Article V convention could yield disastrous counterproductive results. It seems obvious to me that if our political class cannot be trusted to abide by their oath to obey the Constitution of the United States, we have no reason to suspect that they might restrain themselves when gathered together to manipulate the governing document of the land. It is presumed that the various delegates will be appointed by the state legislatures thus assuring that the careerist political class will protect their own interests. A run-a-way rewrite of the Constitution could legitimize all the current unconstitutional ills that we find so noxious. How can we trust them to do a better job of fixing something that they have willfully broken? That would be like asking the killer to do the forensic work.

While I sense that in a perfect world, a constitutional convention (con-con) could be called for a specific purpose to address systemic failures at the national level; our states haven’t performed much better through their yielding to the federal mandates. Thus, I DO NOT TRUST the state political leadership or whomever they might appoint as delegates to carry out the will of the people. In sum, if we are to amend the Constitution, then it appears to me that the more laborious process of the individual states considering and debating whether or not to ratify a particular measure remains our best and safest process. The people can have a greater impact during a state-by-state ratification procedure than we would have if a convention suddenly ran amok.

As an addendum to this discussion, allow me to add that I will never support a “balanced budget amendment” unless it includes a prohibition on taxes and fees increasing and/or a limit to percentage of GDP for government spending. Even with these prohibitions or exemptions I remain skeptical. I do not trust government accounting when they measure the GDP, and they always find new clever ways to pick our pockets. Finally, the “con-con” has the potential to do great harm and could provide the cover for career politicians to formalize and legalize the very practices they use today.

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